Building My Empire in the Frozen Apocalypse (Riley Carter) novel Chapter 683

The words barely left her mouth before Pineapple Beer appeared right in front of her.

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The light on her broken staff hadn’t even fired off. Pineapple Beer lifted her left hand, and the chaotic glow inside the crystal flickered softly.

The woman’s casting locked up for a split second.

PineappleBeer’s dagger sliced cleanly past her throat.

The man with the black longsword crashed in from the side, shoving the teal–robed woman out of the blade’s path at the cost of taking the cut himself across his shoulder.

Blood splashed out.

This time, it didn’t freeze mid–air.

It landed on the broken stone table fragments and was quickly absorbed by the silver lines spread across the platform.

On the other side of the platform, more survivors finally snapped out of their daze.

A squad in matching dark blue hooded cloaks quickly formed a battle formation. Eight people split into two rows–three shield bearers and two spearmen up front, and three mages in the back. The leading middle–aged man had a thick scar running horizontally across his face. He lifted a hand and pointed straight at Riley and TartKing.

“New arrivals! You here for the artifact too?”

Riley ignored him and charged straight toward Pineapple Beer.

The scarred man’s gaze turned cold.

“Stop them.”

Two spearmen advanced from the flanks, closing in fast.

Riley had just launched her charge when both spear tips struck at the exact same time.

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Chapter 682 Fractured Battlefield

Their angles were sharp and calculated.

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One aimed for her chest and abdomen, the other for her knees. It was clear these two fought together often.

Riley split her dual axes apart, her Star–Breaker Gauntlets tightening firmly on the grips. She smashed the upper spear strike aside with brute force. The second spear swiped upward along the ground. Instead of jumping, her Mountain–Shatter Tactical Pants activated their stability buff. She planted her feet solidly and shifted half an inch sideways, letting the spear tip graze past her knee.

The ground strike missed completely.

Riley pressed her axe handle down, locking the enemy’s spear shaft in place, then swung her second axe, slicing down along the weapon.

The spearman reacted instantly, letting go of his weapon and darting back. A small round shield popped out from under his sleeve, blocking the axe blade cleanly.

Clang!

Riley’s strike carried massive force, but the shield held firm.

Her eyes turned a shade colder.

This guy had solid stats and top–tier gear.

The second spearman circled around to her side, his spear tip glowing bright blue as he thrust toward her lower back.

TartKing hurled a small fireball, hitting the air directly in front of the spearhead.

The explosion threw the spear’s aim off.

She took the opening to swap to her Frosted Judgment Greatsword, slamming the blade horizontally into the spearman’s shoulder.

The man was quick, yanking his spear back to block the blow.

The greatsword crashed into the spear shaft, shoving him half a step backward.

TartKing’s own arm went numb from the recoil.

She gritted her teeth and pushed through the strain.

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Chapter 682 Fractured Battlefield

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Her new gloves‘ Light Grip Heavy Judgment made her attacks far smoother than before, but these opponents were nothing like the regular mobs on Floor 17 or 18. Anyone fighting over this crystal had high combat power.

The second she steadied herself, the three mages in the back row began their chants in unison.

An ice spear, a shadow chain, and a compressed wind blade rushed toward them from three separate directions.

Riley spun back, smashing the ice spear to shards with her axe.

TartKing switched back to her staff, casting Silent Bell Blessing to shield both of them while conjuring a healing barrier in front of herself. The wind blade slammed into the barrier, shaking its edges violently.

The shadow chain snaked along the ground, aiming for her ankles.

Riley planted her foot down hard on the chain, activating Earthen Ward to pin the shadow tendril firmly into the stone floor.

“Move!”

Riley barked the order.

TartKing understood immediately.

They couldn’t get tangled up by this squad.

They needed to reach Pineapple Beer’s side fast.

Riley pressed her axe down and charged straight between the two spearmen. Her Crimson Recoil passive triggered, channeling all the recoil from her earlier blocks into a single brutal swing. The blow cracked one of the round shields open.

The shield–bearing spearman’s face went pale. He hesitated half a step while retreating.

TartKing followed up with another greatsword slam to his shoulder.

She didn’t aim to kill, only to shatter their formation.

The man’s knees buckled under the impact.

Riley cut through the opening they’d made.

TartKing stayed right on her heels, rapidly swapping between staff and greatsword. Her

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Chapter 682 Fractured Battlefield

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Tactical Swap cut down on skill consumption drastically. She tossed continuous heals on Riley while refreshing a small barrier on herself mid–run.

The scarred squad leader didn’t chase after them far.

His gaze locked back onto the crystal in the center.

“Forget those two! Focus on snatching the artifact from Pine first!”

The platform split into several clashing factions.

The three fighters closest to Pineapple Beer were clearly old acquaintances of hers.

The black sword fighter fought with ruthless, lethal intent. The silver–gray armored woman and the teal–robed woman flickered with hesitation every time their eyes fell on PineappleBeer, yet they never once stopped channeling their skills.

The dark blue cloaked squad was positioned nearest to them, obviously working in close alliance.

The blue–cloaked members handled outer interception, crowd control, and took out rival factions, creating openings for the three core fighters to close in on Pineapple Beer.

Three more groups remained on the battlefield.

On the left side of the throne stood a small team of six heavy armor survivors in reddish- brown cloaks. They were few in number but fully kitted out in thick heavy gear, mostly wielding tower shields and war hammers. They made no rush for the center, holding steady control of the platform’s left flank and attacking anyone who strayed too close.

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Chapter 683 Old Betrayals

Chapter 683 Old Betrayals

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Four fast–moving black–cloaked figures lurked behind the rubble on the right side of the platform. They stayed out of the main brawl entirely, slipping between floating debris and repeatedly trying to circle around behind the crystal core. Every time they got close, PineappleBeer or her three former allies forced them back.

At the bottom of the throne’s steps, furthest from the fight, waited the largest ragtag group of

survivors.

Their gear was messy and mismatched, like a random team thrown together at the last minute. Some carried staffs, some wore bows on their backs, and others wielded chain blades. Their formation was scattered, yet every single one of them had their eyes locked on the crystal. When Riley had been held up earlier, only two of them spared a glance her way before refocusing entirely on PineappleBeer.

They all wanted the exact same thing.

Riley’s eyes swept over the stone tables and the throne from the corner of her vision.

This platform was no ordinary battlefield.

The stone tables and benches were arranged neatly, and the throne sat perfectly centered at the far end. Behind the throne stood a ring of half–collapsed stone tablets carved with strange, unreadable patterns. The markings looked like records of deeds, or final dying words. Half the carvings were charred and destroyed by explosions, while the rest glowed faintly and slowly.

The stone pillars lining the platform’s edges also had hollow grooves carved into them, the kind used for memorial rituals.

Whatever those grooves once held was long gone, empty now.

This place felt like a tomb, built for someone alone.

Someone had died here… or had planned to die here.

But in the end, it had turned into a brutal siege.

“Burger, watch your right!”

TartKing’s shout pulled Riley back to the ongoing fight.

One of the black–cloaked assassins had circled behind her without her noticing, a short stabbing blade already inches from her ribs.

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9:32 Tue, Sep 8

Chapter 683 Old Betrayals

Chapter 683 Old Betrayals

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Four fast–moving black–cloaked figures lurked behind the rubble on the right side of the platform. They stayed out of the main brawl entirely, slipping between floating debris and repeatedly trying to circle around behind the crystal core. Every time they got close, Pineapple Beer or her three former allies forced them back.

At the bottom of the throne’s steps, furthest from the fight, waited the largest ragtag group of

survivors.

Their gear was messy and mismatched, like a random team thrown together at the last minute. Some carried staffs, some wore bows on their backs, and others wielded chain blades. Their formation was scattered, yet every single one of them had their eyes locked on the crystal. When Riley had been held up earlier, only two of them spared a glance her way before refocusing entirely on Pineapple Beer.

They all wanted the exact same thing.

Riley’s eyes swept over the stone tables and the throne from the corner of her vision.

This platform was no ordinary battlefield.

The stone tables and benches were arranged neatly, and the throne sat perfectly centered at the far end. Behind the throne stood a ring of half–collapsed stone tablets carved with strange, unreadable patterns. The markings looked like records of deeds, or final dying words. Half the carvings were charred and destroyed by explosions, while the rest glowed faintly and slowly.

The stone pillars lining the platform’s edges also had hollow grooves carved into them, the kind used for memorial rituals.

Whatever those grooves once held was long gone, empty now.

This place felt like a tomb, built for someone alone.

Someone had died here… or had planned to die here.

But in the end, it had turned into a brutal siege.

“Burger, watch your right!”

TartKing’s shout pulled Riley back to the ongoing fight.

One of the black–cloaked assassins had circled behind her without her noticing, a short stabbing blade already inches from her ribs.

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9:32 Tue, Sep 8

Chapter 683 Old Betrayals

Riley swung her axe backward on instinct.

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The assassin twisted mid–air and pushed through, driving the dagger forward anyway.

The tip scraped against the outer layer of her Crimson Scale Heart–Lock Underarmor.

The armor flared to life against her skin, blocking the piercing strike completely.

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Riley didn’t give him a second chance. Her Slowdown Ring activated, laying a half–second stun delay over his movements.

The assassin’s pupils shrank in shock.

Riley slammed her axe handle hard into his chest.

He flew backward and crashed into a frozen stone bench floating mid–air.

The bench, locked in time until that moment, suddenly resumed its speed and crashed heavily to the ground. The assassin coughed up blood under its weight, only to be quickly dragged away by his teammates the next instant.

TartKing rushed to Riley’s side, breathing heavily.

“Every single one of these people is strong.”

Riley’s gaze locked on the chaotic center of the battlefield.

“Avoid unnecessary fights.”

It was easier said than done. There was no way to reach Pineapple Beer without cutting through the enemy crowd.

The center fight grew more chaotic by the second.

Pineapple Beer was now engaged with two dark–blue cloaked melee fighters and one heavy shield user in reddish–brown armor.

Her fighting style kept shifting constantly.

One moment,

she fought like the assassin Riley knew, slipping through shadow gaps to strike blind spots, aiming her dagger strictly at joints, throats, and weak armor seams.

The next moment, she lifted her hand, and a thin ray of crystal light froze an incoming warhammer mid–swing. She stepped lightly onto the hammer’s shaft, weightless and nimble, then drove her dagger backward straight through the heavy fighter’s shoulder armor.